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Journal of Creation 13(1):33–36, April 1999
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Disappointing delusion
A review of Unweaving the Rainbow: Science, delusion and
the appetite for wonder by Richard Dawkins
Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 1998
In 1995, Charles Simonyi of Microsoft endowed a new professorship of Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford, and zoologist Richard Dawkins became its first holder, as Simonyi intended. It has been observed that this chair should be renamed for Public Indoctrination in Atheistic Evolutionism.
In the Preface, Dawkins declares that his intention in this book is to make science more appealing to a young generation which prefers the beauty of art and which is drawn increasingly to careers in the social sciences. He uses as a unifying theme a poem by John Keats, who believed Newton had destroyed the appeal of a rainbow by unweaving it to the prismatic colors.
Dawkins first tries to offer the reader some sense of personal meaning in a materialistic, godless universe. Next, he shows how science breaks down complex problems into components, even as a prism decomposes a rainbow into its individual colors. An effort is made to show this is not only useful but in a sense is also beautiful. He uses the opportunity to use scientific and mathematical methods to discredit belief in the supernatural. Finally, he rambles a bit in the last part of the book, discussing topics which don't have much coherence as a theme.
What value or purpose does Dawkins, an atheist, see in life? This is a question confronting everyone at some point. He tells us we are luckier than those never born, to be on a planet all but perfect for our kind of life:
'More, we are granted the opportunity to understand why our eyes are open, and why they see what they do, in the short time before they close for ever' (p. 5).
He continues, 'isn't it sad to go to your grave without ever wondering why you were born?' (p. 6).
Indeed, I was very interested to see why, in his opinion, we were born and are here on earth. What is the meaning of it all, is there an ultimate purpose? He does not tell us anywhere in the book.
One suggestion about what we can get out of being alive was proposed:
'At least a part of life should be devoted to living that life, not just working to stop it ending' (p. 5).
He uses poetry as representative of the arts and music, which can enrich our lives. The only implication he offers for life being worthwhile is that life can be pleasurable, and that science can offer a sense of the awe of it all.
One cannot fail to notice a paradox in his thinking. Whereas we should dedicate some time and resources to artistic pleasures, which are not simply part of fighting to stay alive, an obvious question is, 'Where do artistic and poetic feelings come from in the first place?' Throughout this book, evolution is claimed to have shaped every aspect of our bodies and behaviour, and the only consistent answer must be that such artistic genes were selected for and survived. We have now made a full circle: our feelings of beauty and awe exist only because for some reason those possessing such genes were able to survive better.
This atheistic world-view does have logical consequences. It leaves no room for compassion towards hungry gene-carriers in Russia or Kosovo: they don't deserve to survive, since they are not properly adapted to their environments. Viewed in another manner, their genes had not prepared them to manipulate their surroundings as well as those in other more advanced populations in the world.
Dawkins' worldview excludes other precious feelings we can experience such as the satisfaction of sacrificing to improve society: ethically, culturally and economically. And foremost, the wish in the hearts of many people to please our Creator and the anticipation of spending an eternal life with Him.
This summarizes the first theme in this book. We will soon die, and:
'only an extremely small proportion of creatures has the good fortune to be fossilized. As I have said before, I should consider it an honour' (p. 14).
Dawkins has badly confused science with atheism in the early part of his book, and failed to offer an uplifting sense of purpose and fulfillment for being alive.
The major portion of this book is dedicated to debunking beliefs in astrology, superstition and New Age beliefs while suggesting science has not thereby removed some of the charm in living. Statistical arguments are used to show that seemingly amazing coincidences are actually quite probable given the sum of possible ways unusual things can happen and the number of those able to experience them. Dawkins refers to this as the 'Population of Events That Would Have Appeared Coincidental' (p. 151).
An illustration is given whereby a magician on television predicts he can stop the wristwatches of 'specific viewers' even as he speaks. The number of watches on the arms of all viewers is great enough to safely make this claim, especially since people tend to associate similar events, like a wall clock stopping at that time, as also having been caused by the magician.
The Christian finds little objectionable in this discussion, knowing that the Scriptures forbid engagement in astrology and other forms of fortune telling. In The Design Inference,1 Bill Dembski develops a rigorous mathematical analysis of which events or circumstances cannot be inferred as occurring by chance and shows that the only alternative is a designer. Such states, distributions or events must be both specified and have vanishing probabilities of ever occurring. Without a proper mathematical understanding, false hypotheses could indeed be assumed.
Examples of superstitious behavior were discussed in this book. Animal psychologists use a Skinner Box, in which rats or pigeons learn by trial and error what behavior will lead to a reward. By using a random reward pattern the test animals would often make incorrect associations and perform irrelevant actions. Dawkins does not miss the chance to add:
'Before we feel too superior, let us remember that large numbers of us were brought up to believe that Samson's fortunes changed utterly after Delilah cut off his hair' (p. 166).
This is the Dawkins many of us are familiar with: the facts are wrong and the analogy badly flawed. The act of disobedience against God's direct orders, even as when Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, or Moses struck the rock with his rod, is what led to the punishment, and not some irrelevant, non-causal action such as having one's hair cut off.
Several topics were discussed, illustrating how complex things can be broken down allowing new understanding to be gleaned. An example of a scientifically useful forensic method is DNA fingerprinting. As long as Dawkins sticks to true science, and not speculation, the reader can profit from his writing.
By now, well into the book, Dawkins begins a pattern of dogmatic statements, mostly asides that are not relevant to the general discussion. This is a major turn-off for young keen minds that might be attracted to a scientific career. Instead of offering interesting challenges to tingle one's creative imagination, a flat answer is stated as fact even though it should be apparent to most that alternate explanations are perfectly possible. He just assumes his pet version of evolution, neo-Darwinism, is the final truth and requires no justification.
We are told, 'Growing up, in the fullest sense of the word, should include the cultivation of a healthy scepticism' (p. 142), and warned that:
'Nevertheless, the confidence with which scientists sometimes state how much we know and how useful science can be, may spill over into arrogance' (p. 30).
Nevertheless, Dawkins proceeds to ignore his own good advice for the rest of the book. We read one unjustified claim after the other, such as:
'The eardrum … (via three tiny bones, the famous hammer, anvil and stirrup, sequestered in evolution from the bones of the reptilian jaw hinge) …' (p. 68);
… and you behold a trillion suns as they were when your tailed ancestors peered shyly through the canopy …' (p. 116);
'But there are also no devils, no hellfire …' (p. 142);
'Ancestors of two different phyla … were once just two species within a genus' (p. 201);
'We've already agreed that, as we trace any pair of modern phyla back in time, we eventually converge upon a common ancestor' (p. 202);
'It suggests that the parts of our brains responsible for doing intuitive statistics are still back in the stone age' (p. 178);
'The DNA of a camel was once in the sea, but it hasn't been there for a good 300 million years.' (p. 254);
'But those fossil animals that have no fossil ancestors must have had ancestors of some kind. They can't have sprung from nothing. Therefore there must have been ancestors that didn't fossilize, absence of fossils does not mean absence of animals.' (Emphasis in the original) (p. 209);
'For a new body plan — a new phylum — to spring into existence … no zoologist who thinks through the implications, not even the most ardent saltationist, has ever supported any such notion' (p. 203);
These are examples of what I would like to call evidence-free speculation masquerading as science.
Let's look briefly at a couple of examples. He writes:
'Genes that programme the development of carnivorous guts flourish in a genetic climate that is already dominated by genes programming carnivorous brains' (p. 220).
At first glance, something or other sensible is apparently being said, but just what? How does one get around the problem that body components need a minimum of function to be present concurrently within that generation before the organism can survive? Apparently certain genes, to create an esophagus with a swallowing reflex, would be able to flourish in an environment where other genes had already created a stomach waiting to be filled. Evolution can't look ahead.
This flourishing of genes is vague at best. Michael Denton points out in Evolution: A Theory in Crisis:
'Almost every gene that has been studied in higher organisms has been found to affect more than one organ system, a multiple effect which is known as pleiotropy.2
Genes create RNA and proteins, which after undergoing several processes lead to a life-supporting function. In addition, it is not the same genes which are responsible across organisms to produce homologous physical structures.
Other examples illustrate how details and mechanisms are glossed over:
'A stick caterpillar looks so like the twig it is sitting on that we cannot doubt that natural selection has shaped it to resemble a twig' (p. 172).
He also writes:
'The angler fish exploits this tendency. It has a long fishing rod, evolved from a modified spine, commandeered by natural selection from its original location at the front of the dorsal fin … In some deep-sea species the bait is even luminous' (p. 175).
It is difficult to accept that intermediate structures, which have not been found in any event, could offer any advantage. A mutant spinal bone, jutting out over a fish's head for countless generations, would have hindered mobility and led to a decreased chance of survival.
Dawkins' evolutionary model relies on random mutations in single nucleotides during DNA replication, totally unguided, followed by selection of the fittest by the environment. For the examples, he offers neither evidence nor detailed plausible scenarios. Sir Ronald Fischer has already developed the necessary mathematical framework, and for Dawkins' statements to have any claim to substance, he needs to propose values for the parameters. No attempt to do so is ever done and for good reason.
In Darwin's Black Box (above right),3 Michael Behe points out that there are virtually no mentions of evolution in the 30 major university textbooks on biochemistry. I can confirm this is also true of chemistry, physics, medicine, engineering and mathematics textbooks. Evolution as a theory simply has not been productive in developing the hard sciences. It seems therefore pointless to me to try to interest people in science by hammering away on a theory with no predictive nor clarifying value.
In an attempt to discredit the biblical doctrine of baptism and substitutionary atonement, Dawkins gives examples of allegedly similar practices from other cultures (p. 183). Indeed, many additional examples can be offered. The Mapuche Indians in Chile still sacrifice a white lamb without blemish as an atonement for sin. We are told that:
'Condescension towards "primitive" cultures is not admirable, so I have carefully chosen examples to remind us that theologies closer to home are not immune to homeopathy or imitative magic. The water of baptism "washes" away sins. Jesus himself is a stand-in for humanity … in his crucifixion' (p. 183).
Does this not pose some obvious questions? Surely a sensible explanation would be a common origin of such beliefs, distorted over time and geography. The argument that all these 'superstitions' arose by chance is not very plausible. Perhaps this is evidence for the biblical account of the human race spreading over the earth after a universal flood.4
The selective use of stories could be used to 'prove' just about any point. When we read,
'The Dyaks of Sarawak would eat the hands and knees of the slain in order to steady their own hands and strengthen their own knees' (p. 181),
I wonder why their brains and behaviour didn't evolve over the eons to correct this error.
Dawkins has some critical comments to make of Harvard paleontologist Gould and others influenced by him. With disapproval Dawkins quotes Gould as saying:
'Current controversies in paleontology are just old controversies being recycled. They preceded evolutionary thought and found no resolution within the Darwinian paradigm …' (p. 194)
Gould has often pointed out that the fossil record is not consistent with the theory of gradual evolution from one or few ancestors. The rapid 'Cambrian Explosion', in which fully functional organisms with no ancestors appear in the deepest strata, is inconsistent with the major theory of evolution. I do not find the critique justified. If a paleontologist such as Gould feels one theory cannot possibly be correct, and chooses to exclude special creation from consideration, then proposing even an implausible theory appears more honest to me than Dawkins' pretence that there is no problem.
Co-evolution is discussed in the later part of the book. Predator and prey are said to engage in a sort of 'arms race' leading to accelerated improvements on the part of both (p. 232). Since one is limited to select from features which are already available, the net effect should be faster legs for the prey, sharper claws for the predator, and so on, but nothing truly new. Dawkins discusses examples of complex ecosystems, such as a rain forest, in which various organisms are mutually interdependent (p. 222). What conclusions could one derive from the observation that bacteria break down dead matter and create compost for other organisms? That some bacteria produce methane gas playing a regulating role in the chemistry of the earth's atmosphere? (p. 223). Other bacteria can process nitrogen, a very inert gas, right out of the air and provide products useful for other organisms (p. 225). Is it not just a bit too fortunate that various members of the ecosystem just happen to supply basic needs of the whole?
Much is made of co-adaptation:
'the mutual evolution of genes in the same gene pool. In the cheetah gene pool, carnivorous teeth work best with carnivorous guts and carnivorous habits' (p. 233).
Now it is known that many genes are active in the biochemical processes of every organ. They produce different proteins, which together do something useful. The obvious question must be posed: until these staggeringly complex interactions were in place as an ensemble, just how would evolving genes provide a congenial environment for each other? A grand chaos of useless amino-acid chains, proto-proteins if you will, serves no purpose.
Dawkins commits a sin of which he is often guilty. We read:
'Natural selection is positive and constructive. It is no more negative than a sculptor subtracting marble from a block. It carves out of gene pools complexes of mutually interacting, co-adapted genes' (p. 233).
But nature, unlike a sculptor, must be blind, with no final target. Imagine the wrong pieces of marble being hacked off, with no chance for correction. And in real life once a masterpiece is completed the work stops. Unfortunately, mutations continue to occur in virtually every offspring and cannot be prevented.
The third and last section of the book contains anecdotes of a more entertaining nature, but some of the science is weak. As usual, some claims must be taken with healthy skepticism (like calling retinal a 'protein' (p. 55) earlier in the book). The theory of 'memes', as described here, doesn't seem to say more than that behaviour and beliefs can be learned, and a lot of thinking is stereotypic. Not terribly profound as outlined. Statements like, 'Our minds are invaded by memes as ancient bacteria invaded our ancestors' cells and became mitochondria' (p. 307) are best left uncommented.
On the other hand, the ingenious way our brain seems to interpret sight and sound, avoiding transmitting redundant information, compensating simultaneously for eye and body movement, was indeed enlightening. Such discussions are science at its best, devoid of the usual atheistic propaganda. But the discussion was then ruined at the end of chapter 11 by the superfluous statement:
'For completeness we must note that the brain itself, and its virtual reality software, are ultimately the products of natural selection of ancestral genes' (p. 284).
At the end of the final chapter we read the words:
'The spotlight passes but, exhilaratingly, before doing so it gives us time to comprehend something of this place in which we fleetingly find ourselves and the reason that we do so' (p. 312).
It is not clear what that reason is. If indeed everything is one huge, cosmic accident, then we are here because that's just what happened.
Will this book interest the average layperson in science? That seems unlikely. The last book I read was Darwin's Black Box.3 I read it twice, and got excited enough about biochemistry to decide to buy a textbook on it. Before that I had read Not by Chance by Lee Spetner (above left).5 After reading it through twice, I knew I had to get a book on cell biology. These books certainly excited me to dig in deeper.
The present book did not meet my expectations. Any book intending to support a controversial topic should at least offer some serious substance, add a few diagrams and pictures, and stimulate one's thinking with some hard facts.
- Dembski, W.A., 1998. The Design Inference. Eliminating Chance Through Small Probabilities, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Return to text.
- Denton, M., 1985. Evolution: a Theory in Crisis, Adler & Adler, Bethesda, Maryland, p. 149. Return to text.
- Behe, M. J., 1996. Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution, The Free Press, New York, p. 182. Return to text.
- For further refutations of claims that Christianity was derived from paganism, see Ronald Nash's online article, Was the New Testament Influenced by Pagan Religions?. Return to text.
- Spetner, L.M., 1996, 1997. Not By Chance, The Judaica Press, Brooklyn, NY. Return to text.


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GILKISON, WILLIAM, ship's captain and merchant; b. 9 March 1777 in Irvine, Scotland, son of David Gilkison and Mary Walker; m. 13 Jan. 1803 Isabella Grant, daughter of Commodore Alexander Grant*, and they had 11 sons; d. 23 April 1833 in Onondaga, Upper Canada.
Having received a liberal education, William Gilkison went to sea and served on a merchant vessel. The ship was captured by the French, and the young sailor was imprisoned for almost a year until he escaped on a second attempt. He emigrated to North America in 1796 and took command of a schooner owned by John Jacob Astor and employed in the service of the North West Company. The ship sailed Lake Erie between Fort Erie and Detroit. After his marriage Gilkison, according to the family historian, assisted his father in-law in the management of the Grant estate. By 1810 he was living at Elizabethtown (Brockville) and the following year moved to Prescott where he entered the forwarding business.
Prior to the outbreak of the War of 1812 Administrator Isaac Brock* drew up proposals for the defence of the province, one of which was to enquire "if he [Gilkison] will take a Naval Command." Gilkison did so. In August 1813 he was sent from Prescott to Ogdensburg, N.Y., to gather political information. He was with Joseph Wanton Morrison at the battle of Crysler's Farm on 11 November. Several days later he bore a flag of truce to the defeated American army.
After the war Gilkison returned to Scotland to provide for the education of his sons. His wife died in 1826, several of his elder sons went back to Upper Canada, and his cousin, John Galt*, became superintendent of the Canada Company which commenced its operations in 1827. Increasingly, it would seem, Gilkison thought of returning to the colony. Finally, in March 1832 he came back, accompanied by Galt. Some of his children had settled in the Brantford area. Gilkison purchased a farm west of the town on the Grand River for £500, naming it Oak Bank after his home in Glasgow.
On 4 Sept. 1832 he bought the southwest half of Nichol Township, approximately 13,816 acres, from Thomas Clark. By November a town site had been laid out which he named Elora. He began to make plans for this picturesque spot situated on the Grand River gorge, proposing mills and bridges as the basis for "a new City" and as a lure for future settlement, and journeying about the province to purchase supplies. In the spring of 1833 he stopped at the parsonage of Abram Nelles* where he was stricken with paralysis and died. Superintendence of the Elora project was carried on by his son David*, although William Gilkison's first plan had been to make another son, Jasper Tough, the manager.
AO, ms 497. Brant County Museum (Brantford, Ont.), Gilkison papers, William Gilkison corr. PAC, MG 24, I25. St John's (Sandwich) Anglican Church (Windsor, Ont.), Reg. of marriages, 13 Jan. 1803. UWOL, Regional Coll., William Gilkison papers, diary (transcript). J. R. Connon, "Elora" (n.p., 1930); repub. as The early history of Elora, Ontario, and vicinity, intro. Gerald Noonan (Waterloo, Ont., 1974). F. D. Reville, History of the county of Brant (2v., Brantford, 1920). Expositor (Brantford), 14 May 1948, 24 Jan. 1956. A. I. G. Gilkison, "Captain William Gilkison," OH, 8 (1907): 147–48. R. E. Mills, "Elora," Waterloo Hist. Soc., Annual report (Kitchener, Ont.), 1935: 164–68.
© 1987–2024 University of Toronto/Université Laval
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D. E. Fitzpatrick, "GILKISON, WILLIAM," in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed March 4, 2024, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/gilkison_william_6E.html.
The citation above shows the format for footnotes and endnotes according to the Chicago manual of style (16th edition). Information to be used in other citation formats:
Permalink: | http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/gilkison_william_6E.html |
Author of Article: | D. E. Fitzpatrick |
Title of Article: | GILKISON, WILLIAM |
Publication Name: | Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 6 |
Publisher: | University of Toronto/Université Laval |
Year of publication: | 1987 |
Year of revision: | 1987 |
Access Date: | March 4, 2024 |

subset: commoncrawl


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Several months ago when the news broke about poisonous pet food and lead-laden toys from China, I asked my local pharmacy to give me a letter stating it is not selling me any prescription drugs imported from China. The reply was, "We don't buy any drugs from China."
I said, "I know you don't, but I want you to check with your suppliers and verify that they don't buy from China." That request was met by thunderous silence.
Now we know why. The Government Accountability Office reported that 80 percent of the drug substances used by U.S. manufacturers to produce prescription drugs is imported. The majority come from China.
That means most of our medicines and medical products are manufactured in thousands of unregulated, unsupervised plants run by managers who have no moral code that imposes an obligation to use ingredients that are safe in preference to those that are cheaper but poisonous or at least dangerous. As Walter Cronkite would say, "That's the way it is."
One of China's largest pharmaceutical companies that export to the United States, Shanghai Hualian, has just been exposed to have marketed contaminated leukemia drugs that paralyzed or otherwise harmed 200 Chinese cancer patients. This is the latest in a string of tainted medicines. Manufacturers who have such little regard for the safety of their own countrymen are unlikely to care about the safety of U.S. patients.
Like so many scandals, the problem is not merely the crime but the cover-up of violations; the company refuses to tell what drugs it has exported to the United States. Chinese government authorities have arrested the CEO; maybe he will face the same fate as China's top drug safety official who was executed last year, but that doesn't solve the problem.
We do know that Shanghai is the sole supplier to the United States of the abortion pill, Mifepristone, known as RU-486. The FDA had previously concealed the source of RU-486, and its U.S. distributor, Danco Laboratories, does not list a street address on its Web site or return calls from the news media.
Criticism of the FDA is mounting along with demands that the agency be given huge emergency injections of taxpayer money to do a better job of inspecting imports. But the GAO investigation leads us to believe it is unlikely that the FDA could protect us from contaminated Chinese drugs even if it had 10 times its current budget.
The FDA is so overwhelmed by the flood of cheap drug imports that it is simply incapable of protecting the public from unsafe drugs and medical devices, as well as food. The FDA would need 13 years to inspect every foreign drug plant just once.
Last year, the FDA inspected only 30 foreign drug manufacturing facilities. The FDA estimates the number of drug factories exporting drugs to the United States could be anywhere from 3,000 to 6,800, and the FDA has no idea how many have never been inspected.
The GAO reported that it would take 27 years to inspect every foreign plant that exports medical devices to the United States such as pacemakers and defibrillators. Over the last six years, the FDA inspected only 64 of the 700 plants that produce medical devices.
Unlike domestic inspections, the FDA does not arrive unannounced at a foreign factory; the Chinese have the opportunity to prepare for the inspection. The FDA does not have its own translators but relies on translators provided by the Chinese.
The FDA inspects only about 7 percent of foreign establishments a year. The FDA admits that there are at least 2,133 foreign drug factories for which the FDA could not identify any previous inspection.
The FDA does not have a dedicated staff to conduct foreign inspections but relies on domestic inspectors to volunteer. U.S. inspectors must adhere to an itinerary (presumably arranged by the foreign government) so that multiple inspections can be made on the same trip, and an inspection cannot be extended if problems are discovered.
The entire process of registering facilities that manufacture drugs for export is subject to all kinds of manipulation. There is no system for checking current accuracy or identifying and correcting errors.
The major problem is not the FDA but the multinationals' passion to make free trade a policy that not only locks us into trade agreements that discriminate against U.S. manufacturing and jobs but even trumps U.S. health and safety standards.
Free trade is not only bringing us contaminated drugs and foods, but soon could bring us the products of embryonic stem cell transfers (aka cloning). The Chinese government is financing a new laboratory to conduct research on stem cells, the nuclear transfer and reprogramming of cells, and other cell-engineering innovations.
So, there need be no more demands for U.S. funding of embryonic stem cell research. The globalists can partner with Chinese-funded stem cell factories, like the new stem-cell agreement between Beike Biotechnology and Tsinghua University's Shenzhen Graduate School.


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At the point, Kanye West has proved that he can do just about anything. He's a rapper, fashion designer, and now, a professor. According to TMZ, Kim Kardashian's hubby will be serving community service hours as a professor at The L.A. Trade Technical College.
MUST READ: Kim & Kanye West Set Instagram World Record
But, his new job isn't completely voluntary. In March, 'Ye made a plea deal in the case that stemmed from his fight with a paparazzi photographer in order to avoid jail time. The court agreed to grant him 250 community service hours and 24 months of informal probation. This gig, which will (we assume) have Kanye sharing a few of his fashion secrets, will count towards those hours.
Kanye's new position is definitely up his alley and we wouldn't be surprised if Kim starting Instagramming how proud she is of his lessons, like she did when he spoke at Harvard. Plus, Kanye is known for having some major influence — there is an entire textbook dedicated to his cultural influence — and being the ultimate perfectionist at just about everything (it REALLY took four days to photoshop his wedding photos?).
We're looking forward to see what Mr. West has the say, and hopefully, it won't be a rant similar to those he made while on tour. Eek.
Inside Kim Kardashian & Kanye West's Multi-Million Dollar Prenup
Groomzillas! Kanye West & Dwyane Wade Take Wedding Planning Into Their Own Hands


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President Hoover
President | |
President Hoover in 1945. | |
Born | 10 August 1925 Model T Ford Factory, Michigan. |
Died | 20 October 1954 (aged 29) Yukon Ho, Alaska. |
Nationality | American. |
Other names | Henry, Kuntschlurper. |
Occupation | Vacuum cleaner, President of the USA. |
Known for | Sucking hard, doing blow. |
Henry the Hoover (August 10, 1925 – October 20, 1954) was the 31st President of the United States (1929–1933) and remains the only vacuum cleaner to have ever held the position. His election in 1929, just months before the Wall Street Crash is often held up as a prime example of the cultural arrogance that came with the financial prosperity of the Roaring Twenties.
Historian David Irving summarized the presidency by saying, "In 1929, the greatest nation on earth voted for a vacuum cleaner to become president. This was the American tower of Babel, the moment in which their unseemly levels of pride and decadence angered the gods, and set in chain many disastrous world events, which ultimately led to World War II. But not the holocaust. That never even fucking happened."
Early life
Henry was built by namesake Henry Ford in 1925, who famously said, "You can have him in any color, as long as it's red." The choice of a red face was thought to be a tribute to the industrialist's wife, Clara Jane Bryant, who was widely known to turn a deep crimson as she labored over an act of fellatio.
Ford released the model later that year, drawing attention to Henry's cheerful face in the advertizing campaign, which carried the slogan, "Ladies, with our latest hoover, soon you will be smiling as wide as Henry himself!" Early sales were good if not outstanding, with several thousands Henries being sold in the first 6 months of the year.
Entry into politics
The USA was having the time of its life in the 1920s: prohibition had been repealed, new labor saving devices made household chores a cinch, the increasing number of citizens with telephones meant phone sex was sweeping the nation, and it was all conducted to the background of lively jazz standards. Israel was still a British problem, Osama Bin Laden was just a twinkle in his daddy's eye, and Communists were a curious Slavic invention who seemed to be mostly concerned with long term farming plans. Life was grand.
So grand, in fact, that many commentators were openly questioning the need for a US President. Joanna Corey Sr, one of the first female academics to feature in newspaper articles and radio broadcasts, wrote a book, "What's a President For? or How self-governance is the American way." Jazz singer Fats Waller popularized a similar sentiment with the 1928 hit 'Ain't Worth Electin' .
Into this cauldron of apathy and cockiness stepped F. Scott Fitzgerald. Returning from one of his wild New Year's Eve parties (in early March), he was asked to propose a candidate for the Republican party, and slurred, "Well how's about Henry the Hoover?" The quote, while originally treated as a joke, caught the imagination of the drunk and nihilistic upper classes, and a real campaign began. The New Yorker acquired a Henry the Hoover, and asked in-house writer Dorothy Parker to be head-writer for what would be arguably the Republican party's least credible presidential candidate for over 40 years.
Election Campaign
"Two cars in every garage, and a saucy little sucker in every bedroom."
Parker capitalized on the contemporary culture of associating vacuum cleaners with masturbatory pleasure.
Parker launched an electoral campaign like no other, one which was free of any kind of political statement and comprised almost entirely of witty puns and double entendres. On the campaign trail, Hoover was voiced by Charles Curtis, who would later be rewarded for his work with position of vice president.
The Democrats, faced with what many might consider to be the easy task of defeating a domestic appliance in a political election, floundered. Instead of focusing his campaign on the ridiculousness of his opponent, candidate Al Smith disastrously chose to emphasize his own seriousness, and proposed a series of unpopular measures, including reducing the length of baseball games, changing the spelling of "beer" and raising duty on kitten purchases. The final straw was a radio debate in which Smith threatened Hoover, saying, "I'm gonna wipe the floor with you!" to which Curtis ad-libbed, "With a Hoover, you don't need to wipe the floor!" The American public laughed and laughed and laughed, and Hoover swept to a landslide victory. Smith was a broken man, and apparently refused to allow his wife to use any kind of vacuum cleaner until his dying day, when she duly celebrated by having her late husband cremated and hoovered up.
First Hundred Days
The first 100 days of the Hoover presidency were marked by confusion. Vice President Curtis later remarked, "Despite all the crazy momentum that went with the campaign, we never really took the whole thing seriously until we set foot in the White House. Then, when we got there, we didn't know what to do, so we just ordered a dozen crates of absinthe and lined up all these jazz bands and black whores to come over and entertain us. I'm not gonna lie; a lot of titties got sucked those first 100 days. And not just by Henry."
That is not to say that Hoover never left the White House. In his first 120 days in office, he held more regular and frequent press conferences than any other President, before or since. However, due to his drug intake, they were often rambling, with one reporter writing, "The President, or Vice President - they claim to always speak at the same time these days - talk more quickly than anyone I have ever met. The press conferences take in a range of emotions and always feature a certain amount of crying, but also many moments of almost uncontainable joy, and bursts of hyperactive energy."
The most notable act to be passed in this period was the SuckerBall Act, in which Hoover attempted to popularize a sport he had made up in the Oval Office on the rest of the nation. It was best described as a combination of tennis and volleyball but one which, crucially, required a human to have the sucking power of a vacuum cleaner, never managed to oust baseball as the nation's favorite game, although it was briefly more popular than ice hockey.
The Wall Street Crash
During the 1920s, share prices had increased so irresistibly that traders started to stop checking their portfolios, and simply paid their clients whatever they asked, while they sat in their offices and chewed cigars and had affairs with their pointy-breasted secretaries. It could not last.
On October 29, 1929, during a rowdy week-long party at the stock exchange, one trader, Thomas W. Lamont, was performing a comedy routine punctuated with bursts of melodic flatulence, which he called the Wall Street Splash. Reaching about himself looking for something to resemble toilet paper, he happened upon the long neglected ticker tape and realized the stocks had fallen 11% since anyone had last checked.
Lamont screamed and soiled himself on the spot, and began selling all his shares. His drunken colleagues, some in jest and some in earnest, began copying him, and by the end of the party on Sunday, the US had had 23% wiped off the value of its economy, technically promised its northern forest land to Canada, and sold the rights to potatoes to Russia. It was to prove the defining week of Hoover's presidency.
The Great Depression
The economic fallout of the Wall Street Crash led to the Great Depression, a period that lasted for over a decade in which the US had trouble sleeping, never shaved, and hardly wore anything except for an old T shirt and some sweat pants.[1]
The administration was left completely paralyzed by the crisis. Their most significant move in the aftermath of the crash was to have Henry play Danny Boy on the bagpipes. The performance was met with bemusement which quickly turned to anger, as more and more Americans lost their jobs and found themselves being press-ganged into taking part in the Dust Bowl, the annual SuckerBall championship game, which proved to be little more than a filthy predecessor to the Super Bowl.
Hoover's image suffered greatly during the following years. As if the depression itself wasn't a significant enough obstacle, Henry had made himself a powerful enemy in William Randolph Hearst after an unfortunate incident at the 1930 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in Washington.
Towards the end of the evening, an unusually emotional Hearst was recounting the tale of the day his beloved snow-globe, Rosebud, slipped from his hand and smashed. Hearst remembered how he spent months trying, fruitlessly, to piece Rosebud back together. During an awkward silence, Curtis is alleged to have put his arm around Hoover and said, "A broken snow-globe? We would have hoovered that shit up like that!"
Hearst immediately attacked Hoover, attempting to stamp on his dust nozzle, and although the pair were separated and Hoover was wheeled to safety, Hearst swore revenge. So began a vicious three year campaign in which Hearst used his newspapers - notably the New York Morning News and the Washington Herald - to claim Hoover was a political puppet under the control of a sexually deviant Jewish-Communist Hollywood sect led by Orson Welles and Charlie Chaplin.
Drug addiction: Hoover Damn
By 1932, the severity of the depression was taking its toll on Henry and Curtis, and both developed a serious cocaine habit.
Henry's (well, Curtis's) penchant for crying, "Damn!" after a bout of snorting led to the popularization of the expression 'Hoover Damn' among Washington drug addicts, as a way to refer to a hit of cocaine, due to the powerful image it created of Henry literally hoovering up the drug. Decades later, Quentin Tarantino made a sly reference to the term in his 1995 film Pulp Fiction.
Henry's drug habit was kept away from the public at the time, but rumors began circulating at the end of his presidency. It did considerable harm to his already tarnished reputation, and in 1961, he was officially declared only the 14th American President to have a drug habit.[2] His successor as President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, with whom he had an infamously fractious relationship, took the opportunity to mock his rival by naming the Hoover Dam "in his honor" in 1935.
Loss to Roosevelt
In 1933, Hoover lost the presidential election to Roosevelt who had emphasized his humanity by pointing out he was so mortal and human he couldn't even walk properly. Much was made of Hoover's 1932 gaffe, "Prosperity is just around the corner," when a more sober man might have admitted that 1932 America couldn't have found prosperity if it had had Google Maps to play with. To his credit, Hoover persevered with his "around the corner" predictions, including: "I do not believe another war is around the corner," (1938),[3] "I think German defeat is right around the corner," (1942), and "I think a Red Sox World Series win is right around the corner," (1951).
The New York Times noted that Hoover had "entered the White House in a blizzard of publicity and exited in a blizzard of yeyo," and Roosevelt himself had an ignominious encounter with his predecessor on his first day as President. In his memoirs, Roosevelt recorded, "I entered the Oval Office and found President Hoover careering around the room desperately vacuum cleaning the carpet. At first I thought it was a kind gesture, that he was doing a last minute clean of the house for us. It turned out that he was scouring the carpet for the last traces of cocaine. He had a drug habit and a rug habit! Ahahahahahahahahaha! Anyway, he sucked big time."
Life after the Presidency
Hoover and Curtis relocated first to New York and later to Los Angeles where their drug addictions continued. Hoover would often leave his latest paramour a note saying that he was "going fishing" as a euphemism for what could be days or weeks away on a drug-filled bender.
Hoover and Curtis liked to drive cars, often in the wrong direction on busy highways, and go on wandering journeys, heading up to the mountains, or deep into the woods, to go "fishing" in relative solitude.
In his private time, Hoover began to write Fishing For Fun — And To Wash Your Soul, a work that went unpublished in his lifetime, but which has since been proclaimed as a strong influence on beat poets and Gonzo journalists for its evocation of a lost America, its harrowing and naked depiction of drug abuse, and its almost bafflingly detailed descriptions of floor hygiene in contemporary USA.
Hunter S. Thompson wrote in the foreword to the 30th anniversary edition, "The Edge: there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over. Henry the Hoover not only went over the edge, he went around all the corners and got in all the nooks and crannies."
Although many of his friends and supporters called upon Hoover to speak out against FDR's New Deal and to assume his place as the voice of the "loyal opposition", Hoover did not do so, not least because he was a vacuum cleaner.
The Midget Sex Episode
Following World War II, Hoover became friends with President Harry S. Truman, who even managed to have the less than beloved Hoover's face printed on the 20 dollar bill.
In 1946, in what he would later ruefully describe as an attempt to focus his predecessors' minds and distract them from drugs, Truman selected Hoover and Curtis to tour Germany to ascertain the food status of the occupied nation. They toured what was to become West Germany in Hermann Göring's old train coach but their behavior, one German official would later note, was more typical of 1920s playboys than 1930s Nazis.
Initially propped up by a stash of cocaine they had brought with him from the US, Hoover turned to schnapps, prostitutes and strip clubs to satisfy his hedonistic urges a week into the tour after finding local drug dealers hard to come by. His fondness for giving prostitutes orgasms earned him the nickname Kuntschlurper, a term so notorious that it is still used today in Germany by the younger generations to refer to visiting American sex tourists.
On May 21 1946, they entered the Achtung Baby stripclub in Frankfurt where, among others, midget sex performer Franz Pippenheimer was performing. Henry, who had begun the night "moderately intoxicated" according to special service agents, spent 4 hours drinking and fraternizing with the female performers of the club, before both he and Curtis became increasingly vocal in their abuse of Pippenheimer. Obsessed with the potential size of Pippenheimer's penis, which the performer insisted on keeping hidden under his kilt, Curtis slurred, "If you get it out, he will suck it. He will suck it in front of all these people."
Pippenheimer, who was obviously a little upset at this point, obliged. The resulting photo, taken by an entrepreneurial stripper, was published the next day, and became the defining legacy of President Hoover. President Truman, who had long admired Hoover's way with the ladies, immediately banned him from appearing at any governmental event, and asked for all Americans to draw President Andrew Jackson's face on the 20 dollar bill until the Federal Mint was able to replace the note permanently.
Charles Curtis never made it back from post-war Frankfurt, and was last seen in drag performing with an all-girl cabaret troupe in June 1946.
Retirement and death
President Hoover was brought back to the US by his team of agents, subsequently withdrew from public life, and died in 1954 aged just 29. Little is known of his last years, except that they were spent in the wilderness in rural Alaska, and he is thought to have kicked his drug habit and got clean.[4] He lived his final days without any human company, and the Alaskan police found him dead at his cabin after being alerted by a neighbor. He lay in his bed, next to a broom and a mop.
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We use both tomato ketchup and curry ketchup as condiments in Belgium. On the curry ketchup label, amongst other ingredients is "curry (1%)".
So I tried adding curry powder to regular ketchup to see whether I could end up with curry ketchup, but I think the taste was off. The colour was close though.
I know "curry powder" is a spice mix that can differ, but is curry ketchup really just ketchup with curry powder added? Or do they mean a bit of a real curry (the dish)? Or are there other differences? Is it possible to make curry ketchup with regular ketchup?


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The plan to loan out $350 million from the surplus account of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. hit a major roadblock Friday, when the incoming speaker of the Florida House asked the state-run insurer to halt the program and submit it for legislative review.
Rep. Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, wrote a letter to Citizens Board Chairman, Carlos Lacasa, asking him delay moving forward on the so-called "surplus note" loan, which was lobbied for by insurance companies and hastily approved last month with little public input.
"I am concerned that Board's aggressive timeline will result in the program's implementation before the two chambers of the Legislature complete hearings on this important matter of state policy," Weatherford wrote in the letter.
Citizens' board unveiled the plan last month and quickly voted to support it, despite backlash from some Republican lawmakers and concerns from the state's insurance consumer advocate and the Office of Insurance Regulation.
Even members of the board voiced concerns about the legality of the $350 million loan and asked that independent lawyers take a closer look at the legal ramifications of approving the plan without permission from the state Legislature.
The plan would take $350 million from Citizens' record $6.2 billion reserves and lend it — under favorable and forgivable terms — to private insurers who agree to take over policies and keep them for 10 years. It is slated to begin in a matter of weeks.
Business and insurance industry groups have come out in support of the $350 million loan, and Citizens president Barry Gilway on Friday said passing it was in "the best interest of Citizens, its customers and Florida's insurance consumers."
But criticism has intensified this week, with the state's insurance consumer advocate sending a lengthy list of questions about the financial soundness of the unprecedented loan.
On Friday, Weatherford joined the growing group of officials voicing concerns about the program and the vetting process used by the board.
"This is not an indictment of the idea, but an opinion that the proposal needs more vetting," Weatherford said in a statement.
A Citizens spokesperson declined to comment on Weatherford's letter, stating she had not yet spoken with Lacasa. The board is scheduled to meet over the next two weeks to approve the program, which could begin taking policies out of Citizens in early December.
One lawmaker, Rep. Frank Artiles, R-Miami, has threatened to file a lawsuit to stop the program, which he called an "inside deal" written by insurance lobbyists.
"In the past, when we've approved these programs, it's gone through the Legislature," said Sen. Mike Fasano, a New Port Richey Republican who has been critical of Citizens' growing independence from the legislative process that created it.
Gilway has responded to critics by stating that the program could help shrink the size of Citizens by 300,000 policies and reduce the amount of fees Floridians have to pay after a once-in-a-century type hurricane. Gov. Rick Scott has championed the effort to shrink Citizens and reduce its risk, sparking controversial and unpopular coverage changes for policyholders.
Most of the changes have taken place without approval from the Legislature, but the new surplus note program has led some lawmakers to question the growing autonomy of Citizens' board.
Weatherford, who is slated to become the House speaker next month, indicated that the program "may be outside the Board's legal authority."
"My concerns involve serious questions regarding the process by which the proposed program was approved, the sufficiency of the information and analysis on which the approval was based, and uncertainties regarding the Board's legal authority to adopt and implement the program," he wrote.


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When the bombing of the Twin Towers displaced 16,000 of its employees, New York City-based Citigroup Inc. got a useful if unfortunate lesson in the value of mobile technology. "If it were not for our mobile phones, we would have been in much deeper trouble," says Mel Taub, Citigroup's corporate technology officer. Even though most of its employees were able to return within a week to the office buildings and branch locations they had been forced to vacate, he says, "what we learned from this disaster is that we will come to rely on this technology even more."
Cell phones weren't the only technology that helped Citigroup weather the crisis. The number of E-mail messages employees sent via the BlackBerry portable device made by Research in Motion increased 10-fold, to one million per day. Laptop use doubled, as measured by the number of sessions connecting those machines to corporate servers. While usage has now leveled off, the bank continues to invest in those technologies, both as part of its contingency planning and to facilitate what had already been a growing trend toward telecommuting.
In fact, that trend has been going strong for years. In July, a report from the General Accounting Office noted that the number of workers telecommuting has increased 20 percent per year during the past decade. Today some 16.5 million people work from home at least once a month, and 9.3 million do so at least once a week. Larry Buchsbaum, director of E-sourcing Strategies for Boston-based market researcher Yankee Group, says, "The reality is that we're living in a distributed computing world, and that's only increasing. Telecommuting will be more in demand." Twenty-five percent of the companies responding to a recent survey from Gartner Inc.'s Dataquest unit said they plan to increase their reliance on telecommuting.
Telecommuting often calls to mind a bathrobe-clad "knowledge worker" lobbing in his or her contribution from the comfort of a home office. But the arsenal of mobile technologies available to companies today allows the concept of a remote workforce to take many forms, creating efficiencies that boost the bottom line. Keith Bolt, vice president and CFO of Atlantic Envelope Co., in Atlanta, says that because his company's 70-person sales force can easily access the company's intranet from the road, they spend more time making sales calls and less time filling out paperwork at the office. Using a BlackBerry, they can check customer files, inventory levels, purchase orders, and more. In fact, Bolt says that without the ability for reps to access the company intranet remotely, Atlantic Envelope would have to hire more customer service reps and open more offices. "We have sales reps who live and work in Florida," he says, "and we can support them with mobile technology without having to open an office there."
CFOs and other senior executives are increasingly drawn to the idea of employees who don't need office space. Russ Gilbertson, CTO of NetCom Solutions International Inc., in Chantilly, Virginia, says that earlier this year his company was able to close a six-person office in Atlanta, chopping a few thousand dollars per month in rental costs from the company's P&L. The employees remained; they just began working from home.
A Model of Mobility
NetCom CFO Bob Waldron says, "It's not a huge amount, but you're always looking for places to save." In fact, NetCom, which sells network switches and related services to telecom carriers and Internet service providers, has built its entire business model around the idea of telecommuting. Two-thirds of the company's 225 employees work remotely. "Without the ability to telecommute," says Gilbertson, "our business would be limited to companies based within a few hours' drive of our three office locations."
Most companies aren't so dependent on remote workers, which can make it challenging for CFOs to determine whether the investment in mobile technologies will pay off. Bolt says Atlantic Envelope is spending $50,000 in its first year on BlackBerries for its sales force, half for the devices and half for the related software. That's a relatively small sum spent on one specific device. Companies interested in equipping their remote workers with a full array of tools could easily spend tens of millions of dollars, and possibly more. "The expectation now is that you're as connected remotely as you would be in the office," says Ed Brill, Boston-based senior manager of enterprise messaging for IBM's Lotus Software division. That means that a mobile technology shopping list could include not only cell phones, BlackBerries, and laptops — that is, the devices an employee totes around — but all manner of corporate-systems retooling to make Web sites, databases, meeting rooms, and other facilities accessible from a variety of devices while remaining secure.
Security is a big concern, but it's just one piece of a larger management challenge. "Managing virtual teams, making people accountable, and establishing clear deliverables are major challenges to telecommuting," according to Nagaraja Srivatsan, senior vice president of the project solutions group at Silverline Technologies Limited, a software and integration services firm based in Piscataway, New Jersey, and Mumbai, India. He should know: his firm creates wireless applications and other software systems for clients by tapping a network of employees based at three locations in India, as well as Europe, North America, and other locations in Asia.
The need to bring new skill sets to bear isn't lost on CFOs. Fortunately, technology can help. At NetCom, for example, Bob Waldron is looking forward to a new system created by Gilbertson and his technology staff that will allow him to check on the status of every project at the end of each day. "Today," says Gilbertson, "we have a paper-based process in which each assignment results in a sign-off by the client. But with every remote worker tied into headquarters through our virtual private network, and using Microsoft Project, employees can enter all the pertinent data and we can view the status of every project daily."
Joe Radigan writes regularly for eCFO.
Putting a Price on Telecommuting
Despite the flexibility and other advantages mobile technology offers, finance chiefs are likely to approach it with some hard questions about ROI. And, as is so often the case with technology, that can prove difficult. For Kerry Reedy, vice president for sales and marketing at Atlantic Envelope Co., in Atlanta, mobile computing has become part and parcel of daily business, every bit as indispensable as telephones and fax machines. "We've just got to believe this is the right thing to do," says Reedy. "I honestly don't believe the move to wireless can be based on ROI."
Reedy compares the money spent on mobile technologies with other infrastructure software costs, such as ERP. "This technology lays the track for the last half mile," he notes. "Why have all this other technology if you can't get the information to those who need it?" Keith Bolt, vice president and CFO of Atlantic Envelope, agrees, saying that improved customer-service levels justify the cost. —JR


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Aston Martin is proud to announce the return of Lagonda, one of the oldest and most iconic names in luxury car manufacturing.
The revival of Lagonda fulfils a long-term vision and will bring performance luxury into new markets and territories around the world for Aston Martin Lagonda. Ultimately, Lagonda will be a strong presence in 100 global territories, vastly increasing the global brand reach of the company and extending to new customers.
Reflecting its remarkable history, the brand will return to Russia, enter emerging markets in the Middle East, South America, India and China, as well as responding to demand from the dynamic, innovation-focused consumers of Europe, North America and the Far East.
'The Lagonda is the luxury car of the future,' says Aston Martin Lagonda Chief Executive, Dr Ulrich Bez, 'a combination of total usability, a new form and innovative new technology and materials.'
Lagonda is committed to innovative new propulsion technologies, new materials and elegant forms, creating a functional luxury for the near future. Critically, the brand will allow the exploration of alternative powertrain solutions including flexfuel, low emission diesel and hybrid systems. Lagonda will epitomise the intersection of craft, design and technology with Aston Martin's established high performance expertise.
The intention is for Lagonda to enter the market place with a unique performance avant-garde luxury product, a vehicle that combines exceptional ability with unsurpassed elegance, inside and out. The LAGONDA CONCEPT is a powerful four-wheel drive, four-seater car that will satisfy the most discerning and demanding owner.
'An Aston Martin is an authentic, pure sports car,' says Dr Ulrich Bez, 'but Lagonda is something else, a new brand that will reach into new markets. Lagonda will create a new kind of customer relationship, instilling the spirit of travel, adventure and style into a single, formidable package.
'An Aston Martin demands to be driven. A Lagonda demands a destination.'


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Find out more at Kitchen Refacing Mississauga
Related Article: Kitchen Cabinet Refinishing Mississauga – Options
Mississauga Kitchen Refacing Company Service, Replacement vs Refacing
Custom doors are becoming the preferred option for Ikea Kitchens. It is a fact that there are other alternatives that the designers could have resorted to, but the Blue custom doors offer flexibility, variety, and convenience like no other. Here are some of the specific reasons why designers are turning them to the use of these doors on Ikea Kitchen cabinets. Mississauga Kitchen Refacing Company Service, it's up to you.
Easily compatible with Ikea kitchens
One beautiful convenience of Ikea kitchens is its versatility when it comes to design. It makes it easy to integrate with other kitchen systems, and this provides designers with the ability to use seamlessly Blue custom doors on the Ikea Kitchens. They don't have to worry about ruining the aesthetics or compromising the functionality of the kitchens when they use these doors.
Blue custom doors are made to last
This is not to insinuate that the normal Ikea kitchen doors that ship with the rest of the components don't last long, but if designers need an equally long-lasting alternative, then the Blue custom doors make good candidates because they have been made to last and will offer the necessary longevity just as the rest of the Ikea kitchen components.
Blue custom cabinet refacing doors provide a variety of choices
Many designers love using the Blue custom doors on Ikea kitchens due to the fact that there is a wide variety of choices for them to choose from. The doors are available in different styles and designs and they can also be selected based on the desired functionalities. It thus gives designers an easy time in choosing the right kind of doors that will meet the unique needs of their clients. Additionally, it is worth pointing out that the Ikea Kitchens are also available in a wide variety of styles and designs. It's, therefore, easy to find matching designs for the doors and the Ikea kitchens to meet the needs of the clients.
Built to fit
One of the main reasons why designers in all fields resort to designing custom components is because they are unable to find the exact designs that will fit perfectly well with the other elements of their designs. When it comes to the Blue custom doors and Ikea kitchens, the doors are designed to fit the specific floor plans on which the Ikea kitchens have been installed. The Blue custom will thus be perfect compliments to the Ikea kitchens since they will not affect the orientation or layout of the kitchen in any way.
Personalized selection
The other benefit of customization in design, and which designers find amazing when using Blue custom doors on Ikea kitchens is the ability to have highly customized doors. With the possibility of personalized selections, designers are in a better position to give their clients the very specific type of doors they are looking for. This not only leads to great customer satisfaction but also ensures the clients enjoy every second of using their Ikea kitchens. These are just a few of the reasons that make designers prefer using Blue custom doors on Ikea kitchens. Mississauga Kitchen Refacing Company Service: This is not to forget other factors like the quality finishes that the doors have.


text: We always love to see what Lynn Wilder's been up to, and this particular blog posts shows off her interpretation of Judie Rothermel's PAST ENDEARMENTS collection. Judie's mix of cool pinks and blues with warm neutrals create a beautiful trans-seasonal look. Once you've taken it all from this in-progress photo, be sure to read the full post at her Sew'n Wild Oaks blog, because there Lynn explains her Patchwork Math method for creating the blocks. Thanks, Lynn!


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I have sold a property at 10 3855 PENDER ST in Burnaby.
Gorgeous 2 level 2 bed light filled townhouse in the heart of Heights! South facing fantastic bright open plan totally with the best city and mountain views. Great layout on the main w' spacious chef's kitchen w' stunning quartz counters, ss appliances, custom lighting and eating nook. Dining and living has custom stone fireplace with built in's, faces a lovely south facing deck perfect for entertaining. Up, 2 generous bedrooms up with built in closet organizers, 2 stunning brand new baths- master with stand up shower, marble floors, seemless glass doors. 3rd level has an incredible rooftop deck with 270 deg views to enjoy fireworks & amazing sunsets over Vancouver's skyline! 1 parking, storage, pets welcome & restricted rentals. Steps to shops, restaurants, transit, school & parks. Do not miss out!! Open Thurs Sept. 21 6:30-7:30pm, Sat 2:30-4:30, Sunday 12-1:30.


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Season 2 of "Level Up" Premieres October 23 on Cartoon Network
via Cartoon Network press release:
Huzzah! The Leaks Continue on Cartoon Network!
Season 2 of "Level Up" Premieres Tuesday, October 23 at 7:30 p.m. (ET, PT)
Level Up, Cartoon Network's live-action comedy series about high school friends who encounter their online foes IRL (in real life), returns for a second season Tuesday, October 23 at 7:30 p.m. (ET, PT). Wisecracking, pranking and a whole lot of awesome continue when the Neverfail clan returns to fight zombies, Glamazons, an evil bard and the most terrifying enemy of all… a super-smart Dante.
Online, Wyatt, Lyle and Dante are better known as Black Death, Wizza and Sir Bickle, members of the clan Neverfail. But when game monsters and other randomness from the internet become more than just pixels on a computer screen, they'll have to suit up for battle in the real world. With the help of their friend, Angie, a girl who'd rather fight monsters in real life than with a game controller and eccentric billionaire and creator of the game, Max Ross, they've saved their town from trolls, barbarians, orcs, and skunkbears. Much to their surprise, not all leaks are bad and sometimes the gang uses magical loot from the game, to help them with their everyday problems.
Earlier this year, Level Up premiered as Cartoon Network's #1 live-action series and throughout its first season was the #1 series in its time period (Tuesday, 8 p.m.) with all key boys.
The series stars Gaelan Connell, Connor del Rio, Jessie T. Usher, Aimee Carrero and Lonny Ross. Level Up is created by executive producers Derek Guiley and David Schneiderman (both credited for Chasing Liberty). Peter Murrieta (Wizards of Waverly Place, Hope and Faith) serves as the executive producer and show-runner for the series.
Check-out www.CartoonNetwork.com/LevelUp for insider information and play the two popular online games inspired by the show Maldark: Conqueror of All Worlds and Pickle Farmer. Fans can also "like" Level Up at www.Facebook.com/levelup and get up-to-the-minute information, teaser clips, music videos, photo galleries, special game videos and cheats plus a whole lot more.
Cartoon Network (CartoonNetwork.com) is the #1 U.S. television network among boys 6-11. Currently seen in 99 million U.S. homes and 178 countries around the world, Cartoon Network is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.'s ad-supported cable service now available in HD offering the best in original, acquired and classic entertainment for kids and families. In addition to Emmy-winning original programming and industry-leading digital apps and online games, Cartoon Network embraces key social issues affecting families with solution-oriented initiatives such as Stop Bullying: Speak Up and the Move It Movement.
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.


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Awesome. Stupendous. Amazing. These are the words that do not define Kinnikuman (pronounced KEN-EEK-KOO-MAN, not KEN-EEK-KOO-MARN), which this article is about. But rather "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious", which works perfectly fine. A wrestler of many kinds, he redefined the entire aspect of wrestling as we know it and it is he who invented the use of steel chairs, tables, and farting in your opponent's face during televised sports matches.
Early Life[edit]
Kinnikuman (Perry Ness or P. Ness as he used to sign in his kindergarten papers) was born in San Francisco, California in 1951 into the Yudetamago family and is the younger "twin" brother of Ultraman. Ness lived a clean life, munching on garlic obsessively for strength because he thought it would make him stronger. Of course, he tried other things from time to time, like spinach and pizza, and tasty as they were, they weren't quite the same for him. He also tried tacos for a while, but got tired of them.
Everything went well for the young man until he laid his eyes on Mexican wrestling. Greatly inspired by the antics of these masked doodads, he would seek a proper mask to plant his head into. He tried many different masks, such as a wolfman mask, a gorilla mask, and a gas mask, but it wasn't until someone told him that he was putting on Halloween masks till he realized how stupid he was being, got discouraged, and went home feeling like an idiot.
While outside one day, he found an innocent looking mask just laying out in the middle of the sidewalk, looking for someone to pick it up and put it on. Ness, who felt sorry for this little mask, which looked like a freakish fish with big red lips and a fin on its head, then decided to put it on, and when he did, he soon felt a burning passion enter his body! He realized that this must be what it feels like to be a luchador.
Wearing the ugly mask 24/7, Ness would aim to get his name changed, and succeeded in doing so, going by the new name of Suguru Kinniku from then on out. He would tote this name everywhere he went, including to the bathroom and, yes, even to THAT place. You know the one I mean.
Throughout his school years he could easily earn an A+ in every subject just by headlocking his teachers and threatening to fart in their face. Back during this time, no teacher wanted this, so it was the only respectable thing to do, especially when he had an IQ of 5.
His Entry Into the Wrestling World[edit]
When he reached 26 years old and earned his high school diploma, Suguru decided to say goodbye to his parents. He chickenwinged his mother into submission and body-slammed his father, then used a piledriver on the cat before heading out into the real world after living in the basement for so long. Times were tough for Suguru; The only job he could afford to get was as a sausage grinder in a butcher shop to make "meatshakes".
One time a PETA nut came into the store and demanded the store be closed down. Suguru, annoyed by this, smacked the pest over the head with a steel chair then chokeslammed him through a table before proceeding to grind his arm off with the sausage grinder. He was then noticed by Hulk Hogan, who happened to be right there eating his own chicken and hot dog meat shake.
Seeing potential in the man, Hogan took him under his wing and proceeded to teach him even more about wrestling. While training, our masked wacko was ambushed by PETA terrorists; He then proceeded to wrestle them all into oblivion and tore the legs off of one with a boston crab hold. The result was him being called a hero, and he was given pie as a reward. He thanked the town by powerbombing the mayor.
Hulk Hogan, realizing the power in his pupil, trained Suguru relentlessly all the way to hell and back before getting him into the wrestling world... and that would be the hour of Kinnikuman and the redefinition of "sports entertainment" (what it's called according to Vince McMahon). That would also be when he finally received the official name... Kinnikuman (which is Japanese for "muscleman" and Korean for "he who lives in garbage cans").
After much persuasion through violence, it was agreed that he should be allowed and Kinnikuman signed the contract in blood and then smashed the desk with an extreme headbutt in an act of awesome. He debuted in 1982, where he won his first match in 3 seconds with a kick to the nads. This shocked everyone. But they soon came to love it. This invented the groin attack which is now used in wrestling today. His signature move was the "Muscle Spark" in which he sets his foes on fire, and it hurt a lot, making the opponents "pass out" from serious third-degree burns. From this point on, he was given a new trainer: a piece of meat, named "Meat".
He propelled straight to the top, giving wrestling a more extreme attitude, winning 50 championships around the world by 1996, his own line of action figures (which was called M.U.S.C.L.E or Many Ugly Stupid pieces o' Crap that look Like Erasers) and even a Saturday morning cartoon show, which was based on his wrestling career as he battled fierce monsters and ate beef all day. All the while, he started Kinnikumania, and fans everywhere would gather to watch him smash the rival organization known as dMp, which he also invented. Then Vince McMahon came around, and managed to get Kinnikuman to join the WWE. It was then that his career began to plummet, especially when Meat began to age past his expiration date.
After being forced to wear frilly skirts, milk goats with his bare teeth, and kiss his butt for the 76th time, fans began to boo Kinnikuman, calling him a has-been and a man who sold his soul to McMahon. But he didn't care, he was corrupted by money. By 2001, Suguru couldn't take it anymore himself, and used his patented Kinniku Buster on McMahon in public television and then farted on his face, which in return got him fired and never allow him to wrestle again. Fans cheered, but after learning about this 'never-wrestle-again' thing they began to cry for their beloved hero. Kinnikuman left with a fart and was seemingly never seen again.
Where Is He Now?[edit]
As of current, Kinnikuman is working as a bouncer in a local Pizza Hut down in Arkansas. Suguru makes his living by kicking out kids beating on the arcade machines and shoves the pizza down the person's throat when they order it then refuse to eat it. He has recently released a biography called "This Is A Biography About Me. My Name Is Kinnikuman, and You Better Read My Book, or I'll Smash You With A Steel Chair." He has retired from wrestling, and rightly so, since he forgot all about what wrestling is and how it's supposed to work.
He is living a happy life with his wife and son, who is currently wrestling while wearing a mask much like his father's, Mantaro Kinniku, or "Kid Muscle" to the wrestling world.
However, Kid Muscle also forgot what wrestling is and how it's supposed to work, thus he ends up killin' all his opponents by torning them apart using the Kinniku Buster, generally resulting in a loss by DQ, for killing opponents is illegal while inside the ring (no rules against killing outside) but he tries anyway, and people somehow still love him for it.
Other Things to Note[edit]
- Kinnikuman burned all evidence of what his face looked like before wearing the mask. People only make speculations as to what he may look like underneath. Some people claim he looks like Gary Coleman under the mask.
- He is a wrestler.
- Kinnikuman is in no way related to Kikkoman, even though both seem to be. Then again, records state Kikkoman may be his second uncle's sister's half-cousin's brother thrice removed.
- If you are reading this sentence, you are gay.
- Did you know--nah, nevermind.
- Hey, you... you better eat your pizza when you order it, or you'll invoke his muscular wrath.
- Wrestlemania 27 Undertaker vs. Kinnikuman Career vs. Streak match (Kinnikuman will win)


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William Safire's death has made Peggy Noonan concerned that mean words from annoying MSNBC Ed Schultz will make a crazy person shoot the president.
That is what today's column is about. Maybe? It is a particularly digressive and rambling effort even by Peggy's standards.
It is about "The New Elders," by which she means people who are kind of old, but not yet dead, like Safire and Walter Cronkite are, now. It is the responsibility of The New Elders to be older than young people, who are not yet wise, because they are young.
So the New Elders should try to be responsible, like William Safire was when he repeatedly claimed that Saddam Hussein did 9/11, or like Robert Novak was when he smeared a Chilean diplomat assassinated by Pinochet.
But there is a problem: Peggy Noonan uses math to calculate that there are literally three million crazy people in the United States, and apparently they all listen to Alex Jones.
This is why, I think, so many people-I include, literally, every person I know, from all walks of life, and all ages-are worried that our elected leaders are not safe, that this overheated era will end in some violent act or acts.
Stop reading this and ask whoever's nearby, "Do you find yourself worrying about President Obama's safety?" I do not think you are going to get, "No."
But Peggy, what if you're reading this in the Wall Street Journal opinion section office? Don't you know that OBAMA LOVES DICTATORS?
(Also, like a month ago, it was Barry who was scaring us, according to Peg.)


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Friends Season 3 Episode 1 : The One With The Princess Leia Fantasy
Ross reveals his sexual fantasy to Rachel, which involves her being dressed up as Princess Leia from Star Wars. Monica suffers from insomnia after her breakup with Richard. And Chandler, willingly back together with Janice, wants Joey to bond with her.
Episode Guide
Season 01
Season 02
Season 03
Season 04
Season 05
Season 06
Season 07
Season 08
Season 09
Season 10


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The Beatles' 'Yellow Submarine' Film Restored for Home Release
It took four months to digitally restore the Beatles' 'Yellow Submarine', but that's only one-sixth the time it took to create it. The animated feature film will be re-released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 28. Each frame was attended to individually, instead of by using the more common automated software process.
The Associated Press reports that the film's soundtrack — featuring songs like 'Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds and 'Eleanor Rigby' — will be reissued the same day. It's a package that will introduce the late '60s album to a new generation of fans, while providing a pleasant psychedelic flashback to those who lived it.
"As a fan of animation and as a film-maker, I tip my hat to the artists of 'Yellow Submarine', whose revolutionary work helped pave the way for the fantastically diverse world of animation that we all enjoy today," Pixar studios chief John Lasseter says in the sleeve notes for the re-release.
Billboard reports the new DVD will include bonus materials like a making-of documentary, the original trailer, interviews and behind the scenes footage. Lasseter also has a 16-page essay.
This is a big year for 'Yellow Submarine.' On April 24, Candlewick Press will release a hardcover picture book which combines the film's script with original artwork.


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Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more.
Developed by a coalition of property owners, the Sunrise MarketPlace (SMP) Property and Business Improvement District (PBID) is a benefit assessment district whose purpose is to provide improvements and activities which constitute and create a special benefit to assessed parcels. Sunrise MarketPlace was formed in 1999 and includes approximately ten blocks along Sunrise Boulevard and Greenback Lane. The PBID was renewed for a fourth term in July 2014.
Over the last fifteen years, the PBID has provided an unprecedented level of marketing, branding, economic development and advocacy services. The BID has focused on branding, signage and streetscape improvements in order to define and create a distinct identity for the Sunrise/Greenback corridor. SMP has also implemented aggressive advertising and event programs to drive traffic, increase sales and generate awareness for its businesses.
Sunrise MarketPlace has hosted many events over the years, including the Sacramento Capitals tennis tournaments and the Sunrise at Night Concert Series. These events have drawn thousands of visitors to the area and created millions of media impressions. SMP is now firmly rooted in the fabric of the community and positively connected to customers.
The PBID works closely with the City of Citrus Heights and the Police Department to ensure a safe, attractive and user-friendly environment. Additionally, SMP works toward creating a business friendly environment advocating for ordinances and zoning that support its businesses as well as economic development policies that foster growth and renovation. In 2008, the PBID partnered with the City on a Visioning Project.
SMP works with community partners including the Citrus Heights Chamber, City of Citrus Heights, CHPD, Citrus Heights Rotary, and others to leverage services and create benefit and value for its business and property owners.
For more detailed information on Sunrise MarketPlace and to view a video retrospective, please visit the District's website. To view the PBID's guiding document, the Management District Plan, click here: Sunrise MarketPlace maintains an office inside Sunrise Mall. For more information, contact the Executive Director, email Kathilynn Carpenter or via phone 916-536-9267.


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[Pcmofo] has shared a well-built, well-explained example of how to implement an RFID key system for a door. We call this the right way because it is well thought out and functional. In the past we've seen doors that unlock via a secret knock, keypads, and RFID, but they are all non-permanent solutions capable being transplanted from one door to another. Rather than building a mechanism to turn the door handle, this implementation uses an electric strike mounted in the framing of the door to allow access. These are used for security doors in buildings and are built to keep your door secure.
The hack in this case is the electronics. Using an AVR ATmega168 running the Arduino boot-loader, [pcmofo] has prototyped a two-part design. An RFID reader is mounted outside the door with data wires running to the inside where the microcontroller resides. A hard-coded RFID card is used as a "master" to train any number of tags for entry. The master puts the device in training mode and the next tag to be read is added to the list of tags authorized to open the door.
We like messy wires and quickly thrown together devices but this is built to last and will look great once mounted in an appropriate enclosure.


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1 of 253523 objects
Emperor Claudius Cameo 43-5 AD; Mount c.17th century.
Sardonyx, multi-layered white and brown; glass backing with colouring, closed copper-gilt mount | 21.3 x 16.0 cm (with fittings) | RCIN 65238
Cameo portrait of the Emperor Claudius (10 BC-54 AD) with head in profile to the left wearing a laurel wreath tied at the back in a bow with the ribbon ends cascading down the nape of his neck. His corselet has shoulder lappets, each of which is decorated with a scroll and ends in a tassel. Along the neckline appears the crinkly edge of an undershirt and a fold of material from a cloak hanging forward over his left shoulder. The upper part of the corselet, above the underarm, is tied with a central knot and overlaid by a scaly feathered aegis with a rolled lower edge, zigzags at the sides and the upper border patterned with a spiral and two knotted snakes below. At the centre of the aegis is a gorgoneion with snakes knotted beneath her chin. The shoulder pieces, which lie over the aegis, are decorated with laurel leaves and a central disc. The fulmina beside them seem attached to the aegis. Claudius shoulders a spear and has a sword at his left side of which the eagle-head pommel (brown) is visible overlying the corner of the aegis and the upper part of the scabbard blade patterned with lines and zigzags. The cameo with raised border and flat top is surrounded by a carved egg-and-dart edge. The stone has been mended from many fragments but no substantial part is missing except at the back of the neck and in the adjacent ribbons, restored in plaster.
The image of Claudius is the largest of the surviving imperial single-portrait cameos. The raised border, cut with a flat top showing the darker layer of the stone, is not uncommon but the carefully cut egg and dart on its outer edge is very rare.
The Emperor Claudius, who reigned from AD 41 to 54 and died aged 63, is shown wearing the aegis over his corselet as a Zeus/Jupiter. It is only with Claudius that the aegis begins to appear commonly as part of imperial portrait dress. Another novelty is the presence of the sword with its eagle-head pommel as a strong reminder of the Zeus-eagle motif often occurring in imperial glyptic. The laurel wreath is often found on coins of Claudius and on several cameos; however, in major statuary he is usually given an oak wreath. The fold of a cloak over the left shoulder is a regular feature of cuirassed statues of the early empire and in many respects the cameo seems to reflect a monumental portrait rather than following closely the conventions of imperial portraiture for mass consumption.
The cutting is crisp and highly polished but this is not a realistic portrait and the gross neck and weak chin have been minimised. Suetonius (Claudius 30) describes Claudius as 'not lacking in authority and dignity in appearance but only when he was standing or sitting, or especially when he was at rest, since he was tall, not slim, handsome in his features and with his white hair, plump in the neck'.
Most of Claudius' portraits belong to the earlier years of his reign and here he does not look to be near the end of his life. Comparison with coin portraits suggests the years AD 43-5; this portrait, which demonstrates his merit as a soldier no less emphatically than his claim for divinity, may have been cut after his triumph in Britain in AD 44.
Unfortunately the source of this, the finest and largest of the ancient cameos in the Royal Collection, is uncertain. It has been suggested that Charles I may have acquired the piece from his elder brother, Prince Henry, in which case it could have come from the famous cabinet of the collector Abraham Gorlaeus of Delft, though it is not recorded in his collection. The cameo was in the possession of Charles I before he came to the throne; an entry in Van der Doort's catalogue of the Royal Collection (completed in 1639) 'A larg Ovall Crackt and mended Agatt stoane of . 4 Cullors one on the Topp of an other first browne and then white, and browne againe and then white wherein is Cutt an [...] Emperors head in a lawrell side faced kept in a leathorne Case wch Aggatts yor Maty had when you were Prince'. A marginal note explains its condition: 'This was Crackt and broken [into eleven pieces] in former tyme by the Lady Som'sett when her husband was Lo: Chamb[er]lain'; with the addition in one text: 'before it came to the kings hands. delivered by the kinge himselfe'. The period of the Earl of Somerset's office was 1613-15.
Along with the majority of Charles I's gems and coins, the cameo appears to have remained at St James's Palace throughout the Interregnum. Perhaps the sad and broken condition of the cameo led to its exclusion from the sales of Charles I's collection in 1649 and 1651.
The next certain reference to it is in an 1830 inventory of jewels at Windsor Castle: 'a large oval Sardonyx Cameo - broken, one of the Caesars'. Garrard repaired the piece in 1876: 'Furnishing glass back, gilt Frame & thoroughly repairing the large Sardonyx Cameo of the Emperor Claudius'. The cameo was taken apart and reset under the direction of the Royal Librarian, Sir John Fortescue, early in the reign of King Edward VII
Text adapted from Ancient and Modern Gems and Jewels in the Collection of Her Majesty The Queen, London, 2008Provenance
Possibly Abraham Gorlaeus of Delft; from whom perhaps acquired by Henry, Prince of Wales (d. 1612); from whom inherited by Charles I when Prince of Wales; Royal collection by c.1613-15.
(place of production)(nationality) -
Medium and techniques
Sardonyx, multi-layered white and brown; glass backing with colouring, closed copper-gilt mount
21.3 x 16.0 cm (with fittings)
20.5 x 16.0 cm (cameo)
Featured in
ExhibitionTreasures From The Queen's Palaces: The Queen's Gallery, Palace of Holyroodhouse
This exhibition brings together some of the finest treasures from the Royal Collection to celebrate Her Majesty's Diamond Jubilee in 2012
ExhibitionCharles I: King and Collector: Royal Academy of Arts [London]
One of the most extraordinary art collections ever assembled